Editor,
Growing up, I had the two most amazing parents a person could ask for. My dad and I have been close from the day I was born and for the entirety of my life. He was the person who I could always go to and talk things out and he would listen without judgment and loved me unconditionally, regardless of my faults. He was my person.
In November, at the age of 69, he was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer and it felt like my world shattered. No one really prepares you for the roller coaster that comes with cancer.
There is a lot of ups and downs but it is the hope you carry that makes the journey so volatile.
He was admitted into the hospital in January and had multiple surgeries but in a few short weeks, we went from a hope for treatment that could help him live five to 10 more years to nothing can be done. My dad passed two months after being admitted to the hospital.
To say I was devastated is an understatement. I was stuck in a loop of anger and sadness to the point where I was not sleeping or functioning. I was angry at the people around me who did not seem to understand the grief I was experiencing.
I finally reached out for some help and was referred to Tracy at hospice for grief counselling and I am so grateful that she was brought into my grief journey. She gave me support on how to talk to my three year old about death and gave me tools to work through my grief. She helped me to hold space for my emotions. But most of all, Tracy was a safe space for me to talk about everything that was happening. She didn’t shy away from talking about death and loss and listened to all the things I couldn’t say to anyone else.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you Tracy and the 100 Mile District Hospice Palliative Care Society for helping me.
Sincerely,
Heather Collins
